Adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard

ABSTRACT

An adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard having a material engaging surface and a bottom edge. The adjustable cutting edge has a series of cutter bodies. Each cutter body has a top edge, a bottom cutting edge opposite the top edge, a first side, a second side opposite the first side, a front surface having a concave curvature, a rear surface opposite the front surface and having a convex curvature, and a position control profile extending along at least a portion of the rear surface. A series of retainers are carried by the moldboard, each retainer permitting a respective cutter body to move along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge relative to the bottom edge of the moldboard and engaging the position control profile of a respective cutter body to retain the respective cutter body in a selected position.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This relates to an adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard.

BACKGROUND

Moldboards are used on equipment such as plows, graders, and the like for manipulating material, such as grading, plowing snow, moving dirt, etc. The cutting edge of the moldboard is generally a single piece of material that is replaceable. Some machinery provides segmented blades that permit some movement, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,205 (Smathers) entitled “Segmented Snow Plow Apparatus,” which describes a snow plow blade made up of a series of bits that are mounted on a spring and permitted to independently move vertically relative to the other bits.

SUMMARY

There is provided an adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard that has a material engaging surface and a bottom edge. A series of cutter bodies is provided, each cutter body having a top edge, a bottom cutting edge opposite the top edge, a first side, a second side opposite the first side, a front surface having a concave curvature, a rear surface opposite the front surface and having a convex curvature, and a position control profile extending along at least a portion of the rear surface. A series of retainers is carried by the moldboard, each retainer permitting a respective cutter body to move along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge relative to the bottom edge of the moldboard and engaging the position control profile of a respective cutter body to retain the respective cutter body in a selected position.

In another aspect, the first and second sides of the cutter bodies may comprise side engagement surfaces, the side engagement surfaces engaging adjacent cutter bodies and permitting movement of each cutter body to the respective actuators.

In another aspect, the top edge and the bottom edge may comprise end engagement surfaces, the end engagement surfaces permitting a following cutter body to be attached to a top edge of a cutter body in use.

In another aspect, the convex curvature may match the curvature of the moldboard.

In another aspect, the convex curvature may match the concave curvature.

In another aspect, the position control profile may prevent movement outward from the concave curvature.

In another aspect, the position control profile and the retainer may comprise a tongue and groove channel for permitting movement along the concave curvature. The tongue may comprise a dovetail and the groove may comprise a dovetail groove.

In another aspect, each actuator may have an actuating profile that engages the position control profile, each actuator moving the respective cutter body by manipulating the actuating profile to apply a force to the position control profile.

In another aspect, the series of retainers may be spaced along a length of the bottom edge of the moldboard such that the respective cutter bodies form a continuous cutting edge.

In another aspect, the retainers may further comprise actuators that selectively move the respective cutter body along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge. Each actuator may be independently controlled. Each actuator may comprise a worm gear, the worm gear engaging the position control profile of the respective cutter body. Each actuator may be manually operated or operated by a power source, such as an electric motor. There may comprise a microcontroller connected to the series of actuators, the microcontroller controlling the position of each cutter body based on commands from an operator. The microcontroller may be programmed with instructions to advance the bottom cutting edge of selected cutter bodies and retract the bottom cutting edge of other cutter bodies to create a cutting edge profile. There may be sensors for sensing the position of each bottom cutting edge.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings, the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to be in any way limiting, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge with a retractable pin.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge with a microcontroller.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of an actuator.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of an actuator.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of an actuator engaging a cutter body.

FIG. 8 is a side elevation view of a cutter body.

FIG. 9 is an end elevation view of a cutter body.

FIG. 10 is a top plan view of a cutter body.

FIG. 11 is a top plan view of the side engagement of cutter bodies.

FIG. 12 is a side elevation view of the end engagement of cutter bodies.

FIG. 13 is an end elevation view of the cutter bodies in FIG. 11.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of an adjustable cutting edge with the bottom edges of the cutter bodies positioned to provide a continuous cutting edge.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of an adjustable cutting edge with the bottom edges of the cutter bodies positioned to provide an irregular cutting edge.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An adjustable cutting edge, generally identified by reference numeral 10, will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1-15.

Structure and Relationship of Parts

Referring to FIG. 1, an adjustable cutting edge 10 has a moldboard 12 with a material engaging surface 14 and a bottom edge 16. A retainer 18 is carried on bottom edge 16 and engages a cutter body 20 to retain the respective cutter body 20 in a selected position. In a preferred embodiment, retainer 18 not only retains cutter body 20 in place, but is also an actuator 18 that selectively moves cutter body 20 along the concave curvature of moldboard 12 to advance or retract bottom cutting edge 16. Retainer or actuator 18 is preferably carried at or close to bottom edge 16, although it could be located elsewhere on moldboard 12. Referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, cutter body 20 has a top edge 22, a bottom cutting edge 24, a first side 26, a second side 28, a front concave surface 30, a rear convex surface 32, and a position control profile 34. Referring to FIG. 2, position control profile 34 is designed to retain the position of cutter body 20 relative to moldboard 12 but permit movement along the curvature of moldboard 12. In the depicted embodiment, position control profile 34 accomplishes this by being in a dovetail shape to engage a corresponding groove carried by moldboard 12 and having a first profile 36 that engages a second profile 38 located on retainer or actuator 18. The dovetail shape maintains the position while allowing it to slide or move along the concave curvature of moldboard 12, while first profile 36 allows the sliding movement to be controlled. By following the concave curvature, cutter body 20 is able to maintain a consistent orientation as it wears and is moved down.

Referring to FIG. 14, cutter bodies 20 extend along moldboard 12 to act as a continuous cutting edge. While it will be appreciated that cutter bodies 20 may be made to any size or specification that is preferred by the user, it has been found that adequate results are achieved when cutter bodies 20 have a width of 3″, a length of between 16″ to 20″ and a thickness of 5/8″ to 1″ thick. The width should be sufficiently great to provide room to access retainers 18 while being small enough that the wear can be approximated as linear across its width. The thickness should be sufficient to give adequate strength to moldboard 12, and may generally be close to the thickness of traditional cutting plates. The length affects the amount of wear that can be tolerated by cutter bodies 20 before being replaced, but will also increase the weight of the overall cutting edge and individual cutter bodies 20.

As mentioned above, retainer 18 is used to hold cutter body 20 in place. Retainers 18 are designed to be connected to moldboard 20 in a fixed position and to retain cutter bodies 20 in a fixed position. The mounting between retainer 18 and moldboard 20 may be a rigid connection, or may tolerate some movement for shock absorption. However, as cutting edge 10 is designed to replace a traditional cutting edge, any movement will be minimal. Referring to FIG. 3, each retainer 18 may hold a cutter body 20, for example, by providing a retractable pin 42 that engages first profile 36 of cutter body 20. Retractable pin 42 may be spring-mounted and either or both of retractable pin 42 and first profile 36 may be shaped such that retractable pin 42 acts like a ratchet when a downward force is applied to cutter body. This allows a user to adjust the cutting edge simply by tapping the top of cutter body 20, such as with a hammer. In order to move cutter body 20 up, retractable pin 42 would have to be released manually before allowing cutter body 20 to move. Referring to FIG. 5, retainer 18 is shown as an actuator with a second profile 38, which is movable and is used to move cutter body 20. In the embodiment shown, second profile 38 is a worm gear; however, it will be understood that other methods could be used to engage second profile 38 with first profile 36. For example, second profile 38 may include sprockets, a pin based adjustment system, a belt driven system, etc. In order to adjust the position of cutter body 20 in the current embodiment, second profile 38 is controlled by an adjustment element 40. As depicted, adjustment element 40 is a bolt head that can be engaged by a hand drill or another rotary tool, which causes worm gear 38 to rotate along its axis. This causes cutter body 20 to move up or down, depending on the direction of rotation. It will be understood that adjustment element 40 could be replaced with any method appropriate to adjust second profile 38, such as a socket or an electric motor to rotate worm gear 38. The particular design of adjustment element 40 will depend on the type of actuator 18 that is used. An actuator 18 that rotates on a vertical axis, or perpendicular to the bottom edge 16 of moldboard 12, is useful as it provides easy access to a worker to adjust a series of cutter bodies 20. Alternatively, referring to FIG. 4, actuator 18 may be a motor 44 and a microcontroller 46 may be used to operate motor 44; additionally, sensors 48 may be used to detect the length or position of cutter bodies 20. The use of sensors 48 and electric motors 44 allow for features such as preconfigured cutting profiles, and automatic adjustments to wear. Microcontroller 46 could be controlled remotely, such as from the cab of a vehicle. Referring to FIG. 7, actuator 18 engages position control profile 34 of cutter body 20. In the embodiment shown, position control profile 34 is a groove channel that engages a dovetail-shaped tongue of actuator 18. It will be understood that other designs could also be used to engage actuator 18 with cutter body 20 as will be recognized by those skilled in the art.

Referring to FIGS. 8, 9 and 10, cutter body 20 is depicted with position control profile 34 being a dovetail tongue and groove connection, and second profile 36 on rear convex surface 32 is shaped to allow adjustment via worm gear 38. Methods for the adjustment and engagement of cutter body 20 may vary. Referring to FIG. 11, the side engagement of cutter body 20 is shown. Rather than the tongue and groove engagement shown, any other engagement that allows parallel movement may be used. Referring to FIG. 12, cutter bodies 20 may be designed to connect with an end to end engagement 50. Engagement 50 allows cutter bodies 20 to be locked together and allows the user to preload a cutter body for easy transitions between cutter bodies after appropriate wear has taken place. End engagement 50 of cutter body 20 in the embodiment shown may be replaced with any other method of end engagement.

As mentioned above, the wear of each individual cutter body 20 may vary, depending on the type of work being done, and the position of the cutter body 20 along moldboard 12. The present system permits each cutter body 20 to be adjusted individually to maintain an optimal cutting edge as well as replacing those sections that are subject to more wear on an as needed basis without having to replace an entire cutting edge. Referring to FIG. 13, an example of cutter bodies 20 having a continuous cutting edge despite each cutter body 20 having a different length is shown. Referring to FIGS. 14 and 15, the contrast of a moldboard having a continuous cutting edge and an irregular cutting edge is shown.

Operation:

As the cutting edge of a moldboard is used, uneven wear may result. As a result, the entire cutting edge may need to be replaced even though portions of the cutting edge may still have sufficient material to continue working. Additionally, different styles of cutting edges may be needed for different tasks. For example, some operations require a continuous cutting edge while other operations an uneven cutting edge profile, or an edge with “teeth.”

An example of the adjustment process for an adjustable cutting edge 10 will now be given. It will be understood that the process and details for other examples will depend on the preference of the user, the specific design of adjustable cutting edge 10, and the task being performed. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, actuator 18 is carried toward bottom edge 16 of moldboard 12. Actuator 18 has second profile 38 in the form of a worm gear. Referring to FIG. 7, actuator 18 has a dove tail shape allowing it to be received in position control element 34 on rear convex surface 32 of cutter body 20. Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, position control profile 34 allows movement of cutter body 20 toward or away from bottom edge 16 relative to moldboard 12. Position control profile 34 has first profile 36 that engages second profile 38. Adjustment element 40 is manipulated and moves cutter body 20 until cutter body 20 is in a desired position. After cutter body 20 has been exposed to wear, adjustment element 40 is again manipulated to maintain a desired cutting edge by adjusting the position of each cutter body 20. When enough wear has taken place, a new cutter body 20 may be engaged on top edge 22 of original cutter body 20 and pulled through as existing cutter body 20 continues to be worn. Alternatively, existing cutter body 20 may be removed when sufficiently worn and a new cutter body 20 inserted. Cutter body 20 is designed to be manipulated independently of adjacent cutter bodies 20.

In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be one and only one of the elements.

The scope of the following claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the examples above and in the drawings, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard, the moldboard comprising a material engaging surface and a bottom edge, the adjustable cutting edge comprising: a series of cutter bodies, each cutter body having a top edge, a bottom cutting edge opposite the top edge, a first side, a second side opposite the first side, a front surface having a concave curvature, a rear surface opposite the front surface and having a convex curvature, and a position control profile extending along at least a portion of the rear surface; and a series of retainers carried by the moldboard, each retainer permitting a respective cutter body to move along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge relative to the bottom edge of the moldboard and engaging the position control profile of a respective cutter body to retain the respective cutter body in a selected position.
 2. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the first and second sides of the cutter bodies comprise side engagement surfaces, the side engagement surfaces engaging adjacent cutter bodies and permitting movement of each cutter body by the respective actuators.
 3. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the top edge and the bottom edge comprise end engagement surfaces, the end engagement surfaces permitting a following cutter body to be attached to a top edge of a cutter body in use.
 4. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the convex curvature matches the curvature of the moldboard.
 5. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the convex curvature matches the concave curvature.
 6. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the position control element prevents movement outward from the concave curvature.
 7. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the position control element and the retainer comprise a tongue and groove channel for permitting movement along the concave curvature.
 8. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 7, wherein the tongue comprises a dovetail and the groove comprises a dovetail groove.
 9. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the position control element comprises a first profile, each actuator having a second profile that engages the first profile, each actuator moving the respective cutter body by manipulating the second profile to apply a force to the first profile.
 10. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the series of retainers are spaced along a length of the bottom edge of the moldboard such that the respective cutter bodies form a continuous cutting edge.
 11. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein the retainers further comprise actuators that selectively move the respective cutter body along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge.
 12. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 11, wherein each actuator is independently controlled.
 13. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 11, wherein each actuator comprises a worm gear, the worm gear engaging the position control element of the respective cutter body.
 14. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 11, wherein each actuator is operated by an electric motor.
 15. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 11, further comprising a microcontroller connected to the series of actuators, the microcontroller controlling the position of each cutter body based on commands from an operator.
 16. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 15, wherein the microcontroller is programmed with instructions to advance the bottom cutting edge of selected cutter bodies and retract the bottom cutting edge of other cutter bodies to create a cutting edge profile.
 17. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 15, comprising sensors for sensing the position of each bottom cutting edge.
 18. The adjustable cutting edge of claim 1, wherein each cutter body is fixedly connected relative to the respective retainer, and the retainers are fixedly connected to the moldboard. 